The late 2000s were an exciting period of time that birthed the commercialization of social media. With websites like MySpace and Facebook rising in popularity, many celebrities and musical bands began to gain traction from their presence on the internet. Some still hold relevance today such as Paramore and Panic! at the Disco but, some bands have been lost to obscurity like Cute is What We Aim For.

Formed in 2005 and signed to Fueled By Ramen in 2006, Cute is What We Aim For emerged as a pop-punk band closely related to the emo subgenre of hardcore rock, similar to many other artists signed to Fueled By Ramen during this time. The band’s debut studio album The Same Old Bloodrush With a New Touch features the single “The Curse of Curves”. Performed by the band’s lead singer, Shaant Hacikyan, The Curse of Curves touches on the story of a man falling for a woman he knows that he doesn’t truly long for.

The song opens with the line, “I’ve got the gift of one-liners / And you’ve got the curse of curves.” Hacikyan uses the juxtaposition of a gift and a curse to emphasize his ability to attract women with his witty banter and the sheer amount of beauty in the woman he’s interested in. Her beauty causes him to lust for her purely on face value; therefore, being a curse.

Hacikyan follows this up with:

• And with this gift I compose words
• And the question that comes forward
• Are you perspiring from the irony?
• Or just sweating with these lyrics?

He uses a double entendre with the word compose as in putting words together and speaking to this girl in an orderly fashion. Additionally, the irony in considering having a curvaceous body to be a curse makes Hacikyan wonder if that makes the woman intrigued by his self-proclaimed gift.

The chorus of the song has the lines, “I want someone provocative and talkative / But it’s so hard when you’re shallow as a shower / And from what I’ve heard with skin you’ll win.” Hacikyan desires a woman who can be responsive to his witty banter while also being alluring. However, he describes the woman he sings about to be sexy, especially when showing her skin, and lackluster in personality while comparing her lack of complexion to a shower. This can be interpreted as the literal process of taking a shower being boring or, the ritual of showering someone with compliments being commonly superficial with the sole purpose of building up one’s reputation. Additionally, Hacikyan sings, “It seems I’m too hip to keep tight-lipped” to further emphasize that despite the fact that this woman does not meet his expectations for a lover, her good looks make her irresistible.

From performing at Warped Tour and headlining for Paramore to only being remembered by nostalgic millennials who grew up with their music, Cute Is What We Aim For lives on as an obscure band with intricate lyricism that failed to maintain its level of success it once had years ago. The Curse of Curves is the band’s most popular song, and for good reason. Its shocking title pulls the reader into a steady, catchy rhythm with thought-provoking aphorisms.

Works Cited

“Cute Is What We Aim For.” AllMusic, 2026, https://www.allmusic.com/artist/mn0000650362. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

“Paramore Postpone Two U.S. Shows, Drop off Reading/Leeds - News - Alternative Press.” Alternative Press, 2016, https://web.archive.org/web/20160822022836/http://www.altpress.com/index.php/news/entry/archive_1152. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

Cute Is What We Aim For. “The Curse of Curves.” The Same Old Bloodrush With a New Touch, Fueled By Ramen, 2006.

Tamplin, Ken. Cute Is What We Aim For. 29 Jan. 2025.